What does restenosis mean?
Restenosis occurs when the treated vessel becomes blocked again. It usually occurs within 6 months after the initial procedure.1 Compared with balloon angioplasty alone, where the chance of restenosis is 40%, stents reduce the chance of restenosis to 25%.2,3 Therefore, the majority of patients having angioplasty today are treated with stents. Restenosis can occur after the use of stents, and physicians refer to this as “in-stent restenosis.” Why does in-stent restenosis happen? When a stent is placed in a blood vessel, new tissue grows inside the stent, covering the struts of the stent. Initially, this new tissue consists of healthy cells from the lining of the arterial wall (endothelium). This is a favorable effect because development of normal lining over the stent allows blood to flow smoothly over the stented area without clotting. Later, scar tissue may form underneath the new healthy lining. In about 25% of patients, the growth of scar tissue underneath the lining of the artery m
